Only Death Finally Unravels The Mystery Of A Man's Life
Model your character, knowing that the importance of an event is revealed only after the passage of time and after seeing the whole “image” drawn by the force of destiny.
The glory of a captain as great as Magellan will not be extinguished in our day. Among many other virtues that adorned him, one was particularly noteworthy: that he always remained the most steadfast, the most steadfast of all, even in the greatest misfortune. He endured hunger more patiently than anyone. There was no man in the whole world who could better understand the science of maps and navigation than he did. And that this was true is clear from the fact that he revealed things that no one dared to see or discover before him.
Only death finally unravels the mystery of a man’s life. Only at the last moment, when Magellan’s idea was fully overcome, is the inner tragedy of this lonely man, who was allowed to carry only the burden of a mission, but never enjoyed its ultimate success. Out of millions of people, destiny chose for hard work, only for the hardworking being, this gloomy, taciturn man, closed in on himself – and who, with unwavering will, was ready to sacrifice for his idea all that he possessed in this earthly world, and more than that: to give his life. Only for bitter work did destiny call upon him, not for joy. And fired him like a bastard, without a gift, without a word of thanks. Others reap the glory of his work, others reap the gain, others celebrate victory — for harsh, as he himself had been in everything and with all, did this destiny want to be with this stern and unyielding soldier.
Only one thing was he allowed, something he yearned for with all the powers of his being: to find the way around the world. But he was not also destined for the triumph of return — the latter, happier part of his deed. He was only allowed to contemplate, to hold the crown of victory in his hand, but when he wanted to put it on his head, destiny uttered a word: “Enough ! ” and the hand raised with so much zeal fell inert, devoid of life. *
Leadership: Can the image of your triumphant deed take on the symbolic form of a vision rationalized by “seeing at a distance” and formalized by the control of a pre-drawn destiny?
The concept of “original phenomenon” of the expression of uniqueness attributed to Magellan, can be defined as a concentration of primary energies, functions of sustaining the devotion to the pursued goal that are defining for summarizing another concept (symbolic-archetypal form) proposed by the scale destiny. The question will long be asked: was Magellan an injustice of fate or just a hostage of fate imposed by a harsh time?
If we consider the life code of the destiny of this fearless hero and the formula of his success, we could say that his great deed depended not only on a simple game of destiny, during the almost two years of his expedition, but on an attitude and decisional factor called “the right way”. In fact, Magellan’s failure was due to the high level of self-sufficiency fueled by the avalanche of emotions that overwhelmed his entire being, even at the moment of success. It is a case of triumphant mental effervescence, because at the last moment, instead of returning full of laurels to Spain, he ventured into a seemingly insignificant action, but which turned out to be the Achilles’ heel.
Was it a plan made in advance? Or maybe it was a twist of fate determined by ordinary events, but ended with an unexpected result?
Magellan wanted to show his power and authority in front of a ruined tribe of natives. Behold, the last-minute fatal mistake. Why did he risk his life at the last minute, despite all the warnings he received from his commanders? Why did he not isolate himself in a tower of the saving self-sufficiency of the “chosen ones”? At least that would have saved him from danger. But Magellan did not know how to see through the “smoke”, meaning he entered a trend of vision depreciation, it continued unabated on the same trend of linear conquest, but totally ineffective in the end.
Leadership: Are you tempted to make decisions too early in situations that do not require immediate reaction, that is, without taking into account the tendency to see your experience today in the light of the things you once experienced?
Magellan was partly the result of a tendency to see what was expected to be seen, but without highlighting the unexpected. Or, as archaeologist Albert Goodyear put it: “People tend to see what they expect to see, and when they see something they don’t expect, it’s hard enough to change their mind.” We have seen that the essential way of acting, specific to leaders, is not only to accept a material of impressions given by a “distant” view, but to count the traces of the activity of the spirit in the timeless field of consciousness, which is equally everywhere.
What was apparently given by a generous destiny, was penetrated by certain acts of apperception. The data is only what is created by that act of conscience that tells you if something is not in full accordance with the will of destiny. Or, as writer Daniel Castro rightly points out: “We tend to see today’s experience in the light of what we once experienced. Therefore, we are tempted to make decisions too early in situations that do not require immediate reaction.”
On the contrary, in Magellan’s last-minute decision, a more vivid, lively narrative tone is observed, in keeping with the “wave-fighting” scenes, as if trying to write his own success story by stubbornly enjoying a “last wave”. We see here a robust realism, where the eloquence of the narrator is sometimes confused and loses its breath. And this time, the moment that best clarifies this strange fact, of not being on the same wave as the original plan of destiny, is precisely the border point of the “impossible”.
Leadership: Does what you expect to happen influence what you focus on, and does what you see influence the choices you have to make to change what you become?
To speak of Magellan, his concomitant triumph and failure, seems impossible in any other way than stepping on paths beaten for the better part of five centuries. And yet, we always remember him in our minds and in the present, through his immortal deed, by not leaving him to oblivion, but to respond positively to the need to meet once again and each time with the highest symbol of spirituality: “The Dove”, meaning freedom and free will.
Due to the fact that the pigeon returns home as soon as possible, his destiny works flawlessly. In other words, once you have completed your mission, do not risk undertaking other missions that would endanger your life and destiny. Get back to who you really are !
“That’s all that’s been given to Magellan, that’s all: the deed itself, but not its halo, not its temporary glory. That is why nothing is more emotional than reciting Magellan’s will now that the will of his life has come true and became a reality. Ursita refused him everything he had so humbly requested at that hour of departure. Nothing he had gained in battle, for himself and his family, was recognized in the Capitulacion. Indeed, not a single one of all those dispositions which he had so carefully foreshadowed in his will is given to his descendants after his heroic death; without mercy, he is forbidden to fulfill any of his desires, even the purest and most pious.”
And out of the duty to share the destiny of this hero who has gone down in history forever, strengthening the powers of the being from what his genius left us in his short and sparkling existence among us, let us try to take an important life lesson: “What you expect to happen influences what you focus on, and what you see influences the choices you have to make to change what you will become.”
Leadership is the reality that you have to see from afar before it fatally surprises you because of an unexpected event.
Only Death Finally Unravels The Mystery Of A Man’s Life if we consider that what Magellan bequeathed to the whole world, the purpose of his entire journey, was an idea. As Stefan Zweig rightly wrote:
“More than anyone else. Magellan has always proved that an idea, if carried by the wings of genius, if it is always carried and determined before a passion, is ultimately stronger than all elements of nature. Magellan has shown that one man, with his short and fleeting life, can turn into a reality and an immortal truth what had been only a desire, only a dream for hundreds of generations.”
Beyond what has been written and will be written about Magellan’s work, the exemplary deed, the mission and the confrontations with the unforeseen that he initiated, continuing to be hosted in the memory of time, they are a proof of the living interest kept for the work that God prepared for him and him alone, certainly one worthy of the great stage beyond the horizon. We will never forget him !
